Good luck with whatever decision you choose.

This gives much better diversification protection across geographies, asset types, strategies, investment subclasses etc. versus putting all the eggs into one basket.The downside is that it's not for everyone, and a person has to be comfortable with turning over control to someone else.

Quote from @Gregory Schwartz: Quote from @Caleb Brown: Personally I would not feel comfortable with raising money unless I've done 5+ deals within that asset type.

Some investors are comfortable buying for appreciation or with the expectation that rents will grow at a faster pace.

But I generally don't find that clients need to spend that much money on the process when some simple coaching can make them comfortable in their search.

Get out of your comfort zone.

Very easy to get pulled into a bad property or an area you’re not comfortable with by listening to the wrong people.

Quote from @Michael Challenger: I have no qualms with hard money lending, but I need to learn more about the process and structure to these for typical deals so that I am more comfortable and in a position to reduce my personal risk and risk to investors as much as possible.

Covering this with my salary is relatively comfortable.  

Choose the one that offers the best deal and service, and you'll be set to move forward with the process.